Kinshasa was a village on the south bank of the Congo when Stanley passed through in 1877. He returned in 1881 and established Leopoldville on the banks of contemporary Kintambo and Ngaliema. A post was opened upriver at Kinshasa in 1883. In 1923 Leopoldville was named the capital, comprising both Kinshasa and Leopoldville, established at Kalina (now Gombe), while "old" Leopoldville remained the capital of the Province. The Leopoldville-Kinshasa agglomeration was renamed Kinshasa in 1966.

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Saturday, May 28, 2011

The Forescom Building was Kinshasa’s first skyscraper.Completed in 1946, it excited interest among visitors to post-war Leopoldville and pride among the locals.Its location at the juncture of two radiating streets on Place Leopold predicated a “flatiron” design and became one of the most popular subjects for colonial-era postcards.Notwithstanding the “flatiron” allusion, it may also have been intended to evoke the river boats at the nearby port, and porthole shaped windows at the back of the building contributed to the nautical theme.

The Forescom Building from Ave. VanGele

The Société Forestrière et Commercial du Congo (Forescom) was established in 1912 by Forminière, one of four major holding companies created by King Leopold II in 1906 to deflect attention from his personal rule and exploitation of the Congo (Union Minière du Haut Katanga, the Compagnie du Chemin de Fer du Bas-Congo au Katanga (BCK), and the American-Congo Company were the others).Forminière enjoyed major concessions in the diamond fields of Kasai, centered around Tshikapa, and managed the Bakwanga (Mbuji Mayi) mines for a BCK subsidiary.Forescom was created to exploit the firm’s timber reserves in the Congo basin, notably around Lac Léopold II (Mai Ndombe).

The contractor for the building was Henri Trenteseaux, a Belgian architect who moved to Congo in 1939 and established his own construction firm in 1942.The architect, however, was R. Fostier, and who despite producing such an outstanding design, evades casual research efforts on the internet.The engineer was R. Hins, possibly R.A. Hins, who was the colony's principal public works engineer during the war. Construction work began in 1945 and was completed the following year. The new building even featured air conditioning, a rarity in the tropics at the time.

Forescom Building under construction

Construction nearing completion

Porthole windows on building's rear elevation

Not surprisingly, the building immediately became the address for professionals, commercial firms and diplomatic missions. The Canada Trade Commission moved to the Forescom from Hotel A.B.C. in 1948, followed by the Danish Consulate in 1954.The South African Consulate was established there in 1959, and the Israeli and Taiwan Embassies opened offices there after Independence.The British Council maintained its library in the building in the late 1960s.Commercial tenants included the Bunge agri-business firm (1948), Charles Lejeune Insurance (1949), colonial firms Anversoise and Cafecongo (1955) as well as Banque Parisbas, Congacec and Bell Telephone (1956) and the Royal Touring Club.

Rear of the building from Monument des Aviateurs (Ave. Port & Aviateurs)

Decked with Congo and Belgian flags for King Baudouin's visit May 1955

The height of the building was a matter of speculation for many observers.It’s ten stories were variously described as 9-story (Ahl, 1956), 11-story (Thompson, 1954), even 22-stories (Phillips, 1949).Some of the confusion among Anglophones may have resulted from the Belgian custom of begining the numbering of floors above the rez-de-chaussée, as Wikinshasa explains: commercial space on the ground floor, seven floors of offices, and the top two floors comprising a night club and restaurant.

Place Leopold - Ave. Port (R) and Ave. Douane (L)

Trenteseaux was a partner with Desmedt in the refurbishing of the Hotel A.B.C. (renamed the Hotel Palace, see March 27, 2011), undertook construction of Le Royal building on the Boulevard in Kalina (which became the UN headquarters in 1960), operated a stone quarry at Kinsuka and the Cometal and Metalco construction material supply firms with his partner Huysmans in the 1950s.

The building today

Following Mobutu’s Zairianization campaign in the early 1970s, the building became known as Nioki, site of Forescom’s major timber processing facility on Lac Mai Ndombe.In 2006, the Taj Tandori Restaurant opened on the penthouse floor.Chez Patrick restaurant was reported to have moved there in 2008.The BIAC bank is a long-term tenant on the ground floor.Many attorneys have offices in the building.

Monday, May 23, 2011

The German invasion of Belgium May 10, 1940 put the Belgian Congo in a problematic position, despite the great distance from the conflict in Europe and the absence of any immediate territorial threat.The fundamental question was whether the Belgian Congo would fall to the Reich or would maintain its own identity. When Governor General Ryckmans came out on the side of the Allies, the Council of Ministers vested the administration of the colony (in the face of King Leopold III’s abdication) in the Minister of the Colonies, Albert deVleeschauwer.The colony would not surrender to Germany.

After a brief stay in Vichy France, the Belgian Council of Ministers made its way to London.The UK began immediately to solidify relations with the Congo.As early as July, the British decided to send an economic mission to Congo under Lord Hailey, who was a close friend of Governor Ryckmans and expected to draw the Congo into the Allied cause.

de Gaulle arrives in Brazzaville

The position of the French Congo at Brazzaville, French Equatorial Africa (AEF), was also a concern for the Allies. At the beginning of August, the British flew de Gaulle’s representative, General deLarminat, in a BOAC flying boat from West Africa.On his arrival in Leopoldville, Ryckmans initially accommodated deLarminat at Hotel ABC, then concerned about diplomatic repercussions moved him to a river boat in the middle of the channel opposite Brazzaville (See March 27, 2011).By the end of the month the Free French authorities had engineered a “coup” and the Vichy authorities had ceded to DeGaulle, who named Felix Eboué as the Governor General of AEF. On October 27, 1940 de Gaulle flew to Leopoldville to consolidate Free French achievement in Central Africa.

At the beginning of December 1940, Colonial Minister deVleeschauwer arrived in Leopoldville, with a mandate from the Council of Ministers to administer the colony independently of the Belgian government in exile.Not surprisingly, tensions would develop between deVleeschauwer and Governor General Ryckmans.

Congolia one of FIMA's ferry launches

The entry of Italy into the war as an ally of Germany and the sinking of the cargo “Kabalo” in June resulted in sequestration of German, Italian and other Axis allies’ nationals and seizure of their assets. Among these were Fioroli and Marconcelli, who operated the FIMA ferry service to Brazzaville and had several of their boats sequestered. Another was Righini, whose popular bar and garage on Place de la Poste was taken over by Arthur Hardy after Righini was interened in early 1941.

Social life in the European city was comfortable, despite the war.At the end of May, l’Auberge Petit Pont opened opposite the Colectric power plant, with a Fr.40 cover. Grocer Maurice Michaux announced the arrival of a range of imported Libby’s canned goods. A city-wide tennis tournament was underway with playoffs at the Amicale Francaise, la Cafria, the Cercle, and the Banque de Congo Belge, and Shell compounds.

l'Auberge Petit Pont

Righini Bar and Garage on Place de la Poste

June 1st, Governor Ryckmans opened a soccer match against Brazzaville in Stade Astrid.Special buses were laid on to bring spectators from Kalina and Leo-Ouest.In August, Hardy opened a new “Ballodrome” at Bar Hardy for pelotte enthusiasts.At the end of the month, the river steamer “Luxembourg” arrived from the Kasai with fresh cold cuts, sausages, cheese and fish from Elisabethville and South Africa.In October 1941, Rene Delvaux opened the Patisserie Nouvelle on Ave. Beernaert, an establishment still in operation today.

Patisserie Nouvelle - Ave Beernaert

In mid-August, President Roosevelt revealed plans for an airline to return pilots ferrying fighters across West and Central Africa to the Middle East.The plan was to use Pointe Noire airfield, at the AEF port on the Atlantic, as a stop along the way to Stanleyville and Cairo.Both the US Navy and US Army sent senior officers as Observers. By the end of the month de Gaulle assured US reporters that France would support the US effort, although the US Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), which was negotiating the ferry line with American carriers, had learned Germans believed that the French would not allow planes on the Miami-Khartoum line to overfly French West Africa.﻿

Pan Am's "Cape Town Clipper"

The CAB awarded the ferry line to Pan American Airlines, despite a challenge from American Export Airlines and in mid-October, Pan Am signed an accord with the colonial authorities for the New York-Congo line.On November 16, 1941 Pan Am’s “Cape Town Clipper”, a four-engine Boeing-314 flying boat, arrived in Leopoldville on the initial proving flight.Capt. Gray and crew were welcomed by U.S. Consul Patrick Mallon, as well as the Colony’s chief engineer and the head of the postal service.A reception followed at the U.S. Consulate. The overall reaction of both official and public milieux was “excellent”; the decision to link Congo to the U.S. had revitalized the colony. Pan Am announced fortnightly flights to begin December 11.Although the flight was delayed 24 hours, the turnout at the FIMA ferry landing on the 12th was tumultuous -- Europeans and Africans, flags and bunting, a military band, girls presenting flowers – welcomed the new Allies (5 days after Pearl Harbor). Despite the heat, the crowd cheered as the launch brought the 12-member crew to the bank.Consul Mallon and District Commissioner leBussy welcomed the crew and made speeches.

A fanciful press release on the new route to Africa sent to media houses in the U.S.

The next “Cape Town Clipper” flight was also delayed, arriving from Lagos during the night of January 3, 1942.Another Pan Am aircraft, the “Pacific Clipper” had arrived unexpectedly on New Year’s Day from Khartoum on its way to New York on a round the world flight that originated in New Zealand.The plane was en route to Aukland from San Francisco when news of Pearl Harbor flashed over the radio.Capt. Ford, knowing how strategically important the big Boeing flying boat was and with the Pacific blocked, sought instructions to return to the US via a westerly route across Australia, Java, Sri Lanka, Karachi and Bahrain to Sudan.

The next morning, Pan Am’s agent loaded the plane with 5,100 gallons of aviation fuel.The day was hot and no wind to aid take-off. Ford headed downstream towards the rapids, hoping the current would assist with take-off speed. But, heavily laden with fuel, the craft wouldn’t take off.Normally, take-off averaged 30 seconds, but this one took twice as long, finally lifting off just before the thundering rapids.Even then, the plane’s weight and effect of the fuel in the wings affect the control surfaces.The Clipper scudded down the river gorge throttles wide open.Ford was afraid of burning out the engines but had no choice.Finally, they cleared the gorge, climbing over the ocean and set course for Natal, Brazil, nearly 24 hours away.

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Maurice Michaux grocery (L) and corner of Nicaise (R)

January 1942 also brought a butter crisis.The refrigerated wagon was not transferred to the “Luxembourg” at Port Francqui (Ilebo) at the end of December.Hotel ABC advised its clientele that due to the crisis, it would reduce portions served with its meals.Profrigo announced January 15 that the “Kigoma” was expected on the 17th with an important supply of Cape butter.At the end of the month, another patisserie, Nicaise, opened next to Michaux’s on Ave. du Port opposite the Cercle.The Bata shoe company opened a retail outlet in the Nicaise store.

Nicaise building after rennovation in 2004 - Michaux block on right

An aspect of the Lejeune House - Grand Corniche

The Grand Corniche was being developed above the rapids on Mount Stanley.Local insurance agent Charles Lejeune obtained a lot there and engaged a family of wood carvers from Brazzaville to carve all the woodwork in the extensive house.

In February, the Council of Ministers in London decided to establish a 50 KW radio station in Leopoldville to broadcast Belgium’s war aims and propaganda to the world.In April, the radio station began operation at the Jesuit complex at 7 Ave. Lippens, coincidently the location of the British Institute. College Albert’s cultural center was completed in that year, providing the base for Radio Congo Belge.

The Belgian Congo Engineers Association visited Ndolo Airport, which served SABENA’s domestic network in June to assess progress on upgrading the airfield. Ave. Olsen (Flambeau, now Kabasele) linking the airfield with downtown was also being upgraded.

When Colonial Minister deVleeschauwer arrived in Leopoldville from the US on the Clipper June 20, 1942, Antoine Allard, an obscure Baron who had sought refuge in the Congo from war in Europe, attempted a putsch against deVleeschauwer and Prime Minister Pierlot.His plan was to use the Force Publique armored units outside the town to kidnap the Ministers and establish a “Union Nationale”.An heir to the Allard bank, with interests in Congo through the Comuele commercial firm, the Vici-Congo railway in the Ueles and the Geomines tin mining firm in Katanga, Allard was interned at Clinique Reine Elisabeth.

Despite the positive relations with the Free French, the US continued to experience friction over use of Pointe Noire airfield. In April 1942, the US obtained access to the airfield in exchange for 8 Lockheed bombers and sent a Consul to Brazzaville.The US Army Air Force decided to establish the 13th Squadron for the ferry and supply route across central Africa.

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U.S. Independence day July 4th was a major event in Leopoldville. Governor Ryckmans organized a “Soirée Belgo-Américaine” at the Cercle, with a cold buffet, dancing and “surprise” at Fr.75 person.Consul Mallon and his wife were honored guests. Evening or military wear was de rigueur.

The Cercle on Ave. du Port

At the end of the month, Capt. Vann of the U.S. Army Engineers ordered the SS “Calhoun” to Matadi as the French were raising issues about unloading the ship and holding out for the 8 planes, claiming the US presence would make them a target for the Axis.The 38th Engineer Battalion was part of the 8012 US Army Composite Group and had built airfields in Senegal, Nigeria and Morocco. Because of the vacillating attitude of the French, the US decided to transfer the entire unit – hospital, engineers, post office – to Leopoldville and only use Pointe Noire as a refueling station.﻿

On August 29, the 27th Quartermaster Truck Regiment, the lone “Negro” unit in the Group, was unloaded in Matadi.The Belgians were outraged.The Colonial administration had long sought to subvert claims by millenarian sects that black American soldiers would come to liberate the Congolese from colonial tutelage, a situation which the demands of the war effort helped to accentuate.The black troops were re-boarded.

At the beginning of September, with American troops arriving in Leopoldville, the Free French reached an accord for use of Pointe Noire airfield, but the priority had passed to Ndolo.By September 21 there were 1500 US troops in Leopoldville without any transport except 5 jeeps.The Colonial Force Publique provided 20 Chevrolet trucks and an ambulance to the US forces.At the same time the 23rd Station Hospital was established, with nurses initially lodged in the Hotel ABC.Pre-fabs were established at Clinique Reine Elisabeth.The US base, initially named for Roosevelt, was eventually named Presnell for one of the missing in action in the Philippines. On Armistice Day 1942, US troops passed over the Brazzaville for ceremonial observations there.

Congolese troops of the Force Publique fought decisively in Ethiopia in 1941 with British forces, capturing the towns of Gambella, Asosa and Saio, now prominent streets in Kasavubu and Ngiri-Ngiri Communes in Kinshasa. The Force Publique also served in Nigeria, the Middle East and Burma.

U.S. Troops march to the ferry landing to Brazzaville, Nov. 11, 1942

Despite claims by Pan Am in December 1942 that there were no plans to terminate the “Clipper” service to Congo, the company did in fact do the same the following January.

The first Pan American DC-4 arrives at Ndolo Airport

Following Allied successes in North Africa, the Central African airway became less strategic and in March 1943, the 23rd Hospital was airlifted to Morocco.Ndolo airfield became a central base for Sabena’s domestic network, with daily flights into the interior.The US presence transitioned from military to economic with the arrival of the Bureau of Economic Warfare (BEW) and the Foreign Economic Administration (FEA) in 1943.The Americans ruffled not a few feathers in Leopoldville.Another agency, the Office of War Information (OWI), broadcast from the Congo radio noting, “Leo is always full of people who escaped the Nazis in Belgium…worn out by the difficulties of escape”. Combat correspondent Ernie Pyle, also visited Leopoldville, describing it as a “city of beautiful homes…a big surprise (expecting) a large village of tin roofed trading posts…suddenly amazed to see so many white women”. In March 1944, Pan Am resumed Clipper service, but the era of the flying boats was passing.The first DC-4 landed at Ndolo airport January 19, 1946.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

The unrest and uncertainty that followed Independence in 1960 put a damper on development of the hospitality sector in Leopoldville -- the Memling’s final expansion phase in 1963 notwithstanding (See Mar. 29, 2011).Two new hotels that opened at the beginning of the 1970s demonstrated a change in perspective on the prospects for the economy, but also an indication that the Congolese state was prepared to allow multi-national corporations to challenge Belgian commercial hegemony.

Shortly after Mobutu’s second coup in November 1965, Pan American Airways and the US government began negotiating with the new regime for a new hotel in Leopoldville.Pan Am had been providing air service from the US since 1941 (see Jan. 9, 2011) and by 1965 maintained a weekly jet flight from New York. Pan Am’s subsidiary, Intercontinental Hotels Corp., proposed a 50-50 partnership with the Congolese government.In 1967, USAID approved a $2.5 million loan to build a 260-room hotel and January 4, 1968 (as Vice President Hubert Humphrey visited the capital) the loan was awarded to the Société des Grands Hotels du Congo. A parcel of land was found in Kalina between the Clinique Reine Elisabeth and the Athenée.The Bechtel Corporation won the construction contract and on October 3, 1971, President Mobutu inaugurated the new hotel.

Hotel Intercontinenal Pool side - 1972

The hotel embarked almost immediately on an expansion project to put up a 24-story hotel and apartment tower on the site.In February 1973, Bechtel broke ground on the project jointly funded by Intercontinental, the Government of Zaire and Société Immokin.The new addition was expected to be completed by the end of 1975, but construction took another decade.When the tower opened in 1986, the interior design firm Wilson Gregory Aeberhard took into account that the hotel was a major meeting point in a modern African city.

Hotel Okapi pool side

The other hotel which opened at the beginning of the 1970s was the “Okapi”, constructed by the Lonrho Group on a hilltop in Binza overlooking the city.Lonrho (London and Rhodesian Mining and Land Company, Ltd.) was a firm established in 1909 and led in the late 1960s by maverick investor Roland “Tiny” Rowland. Rowland was most interested in the contract to build a railway link between the Bas-Congo-Katanga (BCK) railway and the Kinshasa-Matadi line, but invested in the power sector and other assets of the Cominiere group.Lonrho’s tenure in Congo was short-lived.After the “Zairianization” economic nationalization in 1973, Lonrho’s assets were acquired by Litho Moboti, Mobutu’s uncle, one of the “barons” of the regime.During the “pillage” in September 1991, the Okapi was looted and reduced to rubble.Kabila’s forces squatted in the ruins after 1997.The firm continued to maintain an interest in Congo and in March 2011 opened the renovated Hotel Karavia in Lubumbashi.

Hotel Okapi pool

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Two additional hotels promoted by the Mobutu regime were hampered by public ownership.On the 11th anniversary of the Second Republic in November 1976, Mobutu inaugurated the Hotel de la Voix du Zaire on the grounds of the telecommunications tower built by the French government.The hotel is since called the Hotel Invest de la Presse.

Following proclamation of the “Manifeste de la Nsele” as the charter for his unique political party, the Mouvement Populaire de la Revolution (MPR), Mobutu began to develop the Nsele site as the intellectual center of the regime.Institut Makanda Kabobi was established in 1974.The facilities were mostly used for party functions, but the Olympic-sized swimming pool was open to the general public.In March 2007, the facility was only a shell of former buildings.

Nsele Pool

Kinshasa's hotel industry has boomed in the last decade, mostly in Gombe Commune. A selection of these hotels may be found at www.congopageweb.com.

The “Inter” remained a focal point of Kinshasa society, even as the fortunes of the country declined under Mobutu’s mis-management.In “The Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz”, Michela Wrong describes hotel’s decline in the mid-90s.As Kabila’s forces converged on Kinshasa in May 1997, the ruling elite holed up there before fleeing to Brazzaville.In 1998, the 30-year agreement with Intercontinental Hotels came to an end and the hotel became the Grand Hotel de Kinshasa.The challenge was return the facility to its former luster.In October 2003, the “Grand” celebrated the 32 years since its opening by acknowledging it had $50 million outstanding debts from creditors. Nonetheless, the original building received a complete makeover in 2009.